Salei, 35, had one goal, five
assists and 10 penalty minutes in 14 games with the Colorado Avalanche
last season. He missed most of the season due to a back injury.

"He's missed some time with injuries, but he's back in shape and feeling
healthy," Red Wings coach Mike Babcock said. "I think it really
solidifies our top six. We think it improves our team drastically. We
got six (defensemen) who can play 20 minutes.

"We don't have to hide anybody."

The 6-foot-2, 205-pound Salei brings a rugged, physical element to the
defense. He was suspended for 10 games in October 1999 for checking Mike
Modano, then with Dallas, from behind into the boards face-first.
Modano sustained a concussion, strained ligaments in his neck and a
broken nose.

He can also earn as much as $350,000 in bonuses, which can be applied to the 2011-12 salary cap.

"It's at a cap number that allowed us to make this happen," Red Wings
general manager Ken Holland said. "He's a third-pair defenseman, but he
can move up if we have an injury. He's shown he can play 20 minutes a
night."

Salei previously played for Babcock in Anaheim for two seasons, 2002-03 and '03-04.

"He brings a little grit, he can skate, he can pass. He brings a lot of
different dimensions,'' Holland said. "Two things attracted him to us
-- he thinks we have a chance to win and he really likes playing for
Mike Babcock.''

Salei will team with Jonathan Ericsson, enabling
the Red Wings to ease rookie Jakub Kindl into the NHL as the seventh
defenseman. The move also confirms that Derek Meech will be traded.

Salei originally was a first-round pick of the Anaheim Ducks in 1996 (ninth overall).

The native of Belarus has appeared in 842 career games with Anaheim,
Florida and Colorado, picking up 43 goals and 151 assists for 194
points, to go along with 1,017 penalty minutes.

The Red Wings now have 24 players signed for about $59 million.

They still have center Justin Abdelkader to sign. He'll likely sign for
a cap hit of around $750,000 to $800,000. Then they would need to trim
two players -- Meech and a forward, either Mattias Ritola or Drew
Miller.

Holland said he'll wait until training camp to see how
things unfold before trimming players. Teams are allowed to be as much
as 10 percent over the salary cap until the start of the regular season.

"I was fine going into the season with what we had," Holland said.
"Last week I talked with the agents for a couple of defensemen. We got
to see what Ritola and Kindl can do. We'll get to camp and sort it out."

Once the Red Wings ink Abdelkader and trim two players, they'll be
right around $58.7 million, leaving them roughly $700,000 under the
$59.4 million salary cap.

That gives them enough space to recall a
player from the Grand Rapids Griffins if a few short-term injuries
leaves them short of a full lineup. That is essential in case a
goaltender has a minor injury or illness.

Salei originally was a first-round pick of the Anaheim Ducks in 1996 (ninth overall). The native of Belarus has appeared in 842 career games with Anaheim, Florida and Colorado, picking up 43 goals and 151 assists for 194 points, to go along with 1,017 penalty minutes.